Evaluation of secondary dispersal in a large-seeded tree Aesculus turbinata: a test of directed dispersal

Evaluation of secondary dispersal in a large-seeded tree Aesculus turbinata: a test of directed... Among the several hypotheses on selective advantage of seed dispersal, the directed dispersal hypothesis explains the advantage of non-random seed transportation by animals to particular patch type suitable for offspring establishment. We tested this hypothesis in dispersal of a large-seeded, rodent-dispersed tree (Aesculus turbinata) in a temperate forest. We investigated the change in location of seeds through secondary dispersal, and the survival and growth of seedlings at their destinations. Hemispherical photographs taken at the seed locations both before and after secondary dispersal were used to evaluate the consequence of dispersal. Survival and growth rates of seedlings were measured to evaluate the responses of seedlings to light, the most important factor for seedling establishment in A. turbinata. Survival and growth rates of the seedlings were both positively correlated with light conditions, indicating the advantage of dispersal to the microsites with more light available. However, light levels at seed destinations were not significantly different from those at the locations of seeds before secondary dispersal nor those of the surrounding background forest floor. Survival of newly-emerged seedlings varied as a function of light level but not seedling density. This suggests that the effect of density-dependent mortality was small relative to light-dependent mortality during the seedling stage. Therefore we conclude that the directed dispersal hypothesis for this species is rejected, and that the role of rodents in dispersing large seeds secondarily is more important for finding suitable sites merely by enlarging seed shadow (mean dispersal distance = 12.2–44.7 m during the 3 years studied, max. = 41.5–114.5 m) and relatively less important for escaping natural enemies. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Plant Ecology Springer Journals

Evaluation of secondary dispersal in a large-seeded tree Aesculus turbinata: a test of directed dispersal

10 pages
Read Article

Loading next page...
 
/lp/springer-journals/evaluation-of-secondary-dispersal-in-a-large-seeded-tree-aesculus-ojCPQeaRBW
Publisher
Springer Journals
Copyright
Copyright © 1999 by Kluwer Academic Publishers
Subject
Life Sciences; Plant Sciences
ISSN
1385-0237
eISSN
1573-5052
DOI
10.1023/A:1009816111057
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Among the several hypotheses on selective advantage of seed dispersal, the directed dispersal hypothesis explains the advantage of non-random seed transportation by animals to particular patch type suitable for offspring establishment. We tested this hypothesis in dispersal of a large-seeded, rodent-dispersed tree (Aesculus turbinata) in a temperate forest. We investigated the change in location of seeds through secondary dispersal, and the survival and growth of seedlings at their destinations. Hemispherical photographs taken at the seed locations both before and after secondary dispersal were used to evaluate the consequence of dispersal. Survival and growth rates of seedlings were measured to evaluate the responses of seedlings to light, the most important factor for seedling establishment in A. turbinata. Survival and growth rates of the seedlings were both positively correlated with light conditions, indicating the advantage of dispersal to the microsites with more light available. However, light levels at seed destinations were not significantly different from those at the locations of seeds before secondary dispersal nor those of the surrounding background forest floor. Survival of newly-emerged seedlings varied as a function of light level but not seedling density. This suggests that the effect of density-dependent mortality was small relative to light-dependent mortality during the seedling stage. Therefore we conclude that the directed dispersal hypothesis for this species is rejected, and that the role of rodents in dispersing large seeds secondarily is more important for finding suitable sites merely by enlarging seed shadow (mean dispersal distance = 12.2–44.7 m during the 3 years studied, max. = 41.5–114.5 m) and relatively less important for escaping natural enemies.

Journal

Plant Ecology – Springer Journals

Published: Oct 19, 2004

References

  • A Pictorial Guide to the Mammals of Japan
    Abe, H.; Ishii, N.; Kaneko, Y.; Maeda, K.; Miura, S.; Yoneda, M.
  • Seedling survival of tropical tree species: interactions of dispersal distance, light-gaps, and pathogens
    Augspurger, C. K.
  • Pathogen mortality of tropical tree seedlings: experimental studies of the effects of dispersal distance, seedling mortality, and light conditions
    Augspurger, C. K.; Kelly, C. K.
  • Experimental studies of seedling recruitment from contrasting seed distributions
    Augspurger, C. K.; Kitajima, K.
  • Habitat selection in plants
    Bazzaz, F. A.
  • The fate of Viola seeds dispersed by ants
    Culver, D. C.; Beattie, A. J.
  • Seed-dispersal of Vouacapoua americana (Caesalpiniaceae) by caviomorph rodents in French Guiana
    Forget, P. M.
  • Evidence for secondary seed dispersal by rodents in Panama
    Forget, P. M.; Milleron, T.
  • Selective advantages to hemi-parasitic annuals, genus Melamphyrum, of a seed-dispersal mutualism involving ants: I. Favorable nest sites
    Gibson, W.
  • Directed dispersal: demographic analysis of an ant-seed mutualism
    Hanzawa, F. M.; Beattie, A. J.; Culver, D. C.
  • Seedfall pattern of several species of birddispersed plants in an Illinois woodland
    Hoppes, W. G.
  • Ant-nest soil and seedling growth in a neotropical ant-dispersed herb
    Horvitz, C. C.; Schemske, D. W.
  • Impacts of secondary seed dispersal and herbivory on seedling survival in Aesculus turbinata
    Hoshizaki, K.; Suzuki, W.; Sasaki, S.
  • Early consequences of seed dispersal for a neotropical tree (Virola surinamensis)
    Howe, H. F.; Schupp, E. W.; Westley, L. C.
  • Ecology of seed dispersal
    Howe, H. F.; Smallwood, J.
  • Quantitative analysis of acorn transportation by rodents using magnetic locator
    Iida, S.
  • Removal of fallen Aesculus turbinata seeds by small mammals
    Isaji, H.; Sugita, H.
  • Seed predation by animals
    Janzen, D. H.
  • Shuffling the offspring: Uncoupling and spatial discordance of multiple stages in vertebrate seed dispersal
    Jordano, P.; Herrera, C. M.
  • Distribution of palm fruits on a rain forest floor: Why white-lipped peccaries forage near objects
    Kiltie, R. A.
  • Tropical wet forest treefall gaps and distributions of understory bird and plants
    Levey, D. J.
  • Riparian Landscapes
    Malanson, G. P.
  • Spatial and seasonal patterns of seed dissemination of Cornus controversa in a temperate forest
    Masaki, T.; Kominami, Y.; Nakashizuka, T.
  • Doctoral thesis
    Miguchi, H.
  • Dispersal of Quercus mongolica acorns in a broadleaved deciduous forest 2. Scatterhoarding by mice
    Miyaki, M.; Kikuzawa, K.
  • Buried viable seed populations in forest communities on the Hiba Mountains, southwestern Japan
    Nakagoshi, N.
  • Evaluating increased fitness through dispersal: A comparative study on tree populations in a temperate forest
    Nakashizuka, T.; Iida, S.; Masaki, T.; Shibata, M.; Tanaka, H.
  • Habitat preference of Apodemus speciosus and A. argenteus
    Nishikata, S.
  • Evidence against the hypothesis that ant-dispersed seeds reach nutrient-enriched microsites
    Rice, B.; Westoby, M.
  • Seeds of woody plants in the United States
    Schopmeyer, C. S.
  • Seed and early seedling predation in the forest understory and in treefall gaps
    Schupp, E. W.
  • Quantity, quality, and the effectiveness of seed dispersal by animals
    Schupp, E.W.
  • Seed-seedling conflicts, habitat choice, and patterns of plant recruitment
    Schupp, E. W.
  • Arrival and survival in tropical treefall gaps
    Schupp, E. W.; Howe, H. F.; Augspurger, C. K.; Levey, D. J.
  • Mammalian seed dispersal of pignut hickory during three fruiting seasons
    Sork, V. L.
  • Examination of seed dispersal and survival in red oak, Quercus rubra (Fagaceae), using metal-tagged acorns
    Sork, V. L.
  • How fox squirrels influence the invasion of prairies by nut-bearing trees
    Stapanian, M. A.; Smith, C. C.
  • VisualStat users' manual
  • HEMIPHOT, a programme to analyze vegetation indices, light and light quality from hemispherical photographs
    Steege, H. t.
  • Tatewaki's iconography of the vegetation of the natural forest in Japan (VII)
    Tatewaki, M.; Tsujii, T.; Tohyama, M.
  • Disturbance and the dispersal of fleshy fruits
    Thompson, J. N.; Willson, M. F.
  • A case study of a plant-animal relationship: Cola lizae and lowland gorillas in the Lope Reserve, Gabon
    Tutin, C. G.; Williamson, E. A.; Rogers, M. E.; Fernandez, M.
  • The role of animals in dispersing a 'winddispersed' pine
    Vander Wall, S. B.
  • Cache site selection by chipmunks (Tamias spp.) and its influence on the effectiveness of seed dispersal in Jeffrey pine (Pinus jeffreyi)
    VanderWall, S. B.
  • Removal of wind-dispersed pine seeds by ground-foraging vertebrates
    Vander Wall, S. B.
  • Coadaptations of the Clark's nutcracker and the piñon pine for efficient seed harvest and dispersal
    Vander Wall, S. B.; Balda, R. P.
  • The population-dynamic functions of seed dispersal
    Venable, D. L.; Brown, J. S.
  • Comparative evolutionary ecology of seed size
    Westoby, M.; Jurado, E.; Leishman, M.
  • Seeds: The ecology of regeneration in plant communities
    Willson, M. F.

You’re reading a free preview. Subscribe to read the entire article.

Try 2 weeks free now

DeepDyve is your
personal research library

It’s your single place to instantly
discover and read the research
that matters to you.

Enjoy affordable access to
over 18 million articles from more than
15,000 peer-reviewed journals.

All for just $49/month

Explore the DeepDyve Library

or browse the journals available

Search

Query the DeepDyve database, plus search all of PubMed and Google Scholar seamlessly

Organize

Save any article or search result from DeepDyve, PubMed, and Google Scholar... all in one place.

Access

Get unlimited, online access to over 18 million full-text articles from more than 15,000 scientific journals.

Your journals are on DeepDyve

Read from thousands of the leading scholarly journals from SpringerNature, Elsevier, Wiley-Blackwell, Oxford University Press and more.

All the latest content is available, no embargo periods.

See the journals in your area

DeepDyve

Freelancer

DeepDyve

Pro

Price

FREE

$49/month
$360/year

Save searches from
Google Scholar,
PubMed

Create folders to
organize your research

Export folders, citations

Read DeepDyve articles

Abstract access only

Unlimited access to over
18 million full-text articles

Print

20 pages / month

PDF Discount

20% off

Sign up
for free
Start 14 day
Free Trial